


Welcome Home

by EHyde



Category: Akatsuki no Yona | Yona of the Dawn
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-09
Updated: 2017-06-09
Packaged: 2018-11-12 05:38:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,445
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11155362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EHyde/pseuds/EHyde
Summary: Yun-ho returns from a business trip to the Kai Empire and brings back a few surprises for Geun-tae.





	Welcome Home

“Welcome home, Lady Yun-ho!”

Yun-ho stepped out of her carriage and took the hand Chul-ran offered her. She was exhausted from her travels. Her brief stay in Port Awa had been a nice respite after nearly a week at sea, returning from the Kai Empire, but it was good to finally be home. “Thank you, Chul-ran.”

“I’ll send some servants to bring your trunk and your bags.” They stepped through the gate, and Chul-ran kept up an excited stream of chatter at her side. “Did you do a lot of business? What did all those fancy merchants in the Kai Empire think of your tea?” After a few months of successfully exporting her tea to the Kai Empire, Yun-ho had been invited to present it in person to an elite consortium of merchants. It was an opportunity she couldn't pass up—but because of his duties to the kingdom, Geun-tae hadn't been able to go with her. By now, they'd been apart for nearly a month, the longest since they'd been married.

“They really loved it!” Even after it had a week to sink in, she still had a hard time believing her success. “I think we'll need to expand the plantation—but we can afford to do that, now! Oh, I wonder if the hills above Chi'shin will produce the right quality…”

“We were all praying for your success!”

“Oho, even my husband wants this 'smelly tea’ to do well?”

“He keeps saying that if people in the Kai Empire have bad taste, it can’t be helped,” Chul-ran laughed. Then he paused, looking into Yun-ho’s eyes. “He does, though. He brags about you whenever he gets a chance, and he’s been so worried—he barely slept at all the first week you were gone—” 

Yun-ho smiled, thinking of what she would say to greet her husband—and then all those words vanished from her head as Geun-tae stepped into view on the other side of the courtyard. She dropped Chul-ran’s hand and ran to him, leaping into his arms, feeling his embrace for the first time in what felt like forever.

“Yun-ho!”

And his voice—as dreamy as the day they first met. But the effect was ruined by the next sentence out of his mouth. “...the hell are you wearing?” 

He set her back down and she stepped back, twirling around to show him. “Do you like it? It’s the latest fashion in Southern Kai!” Her new qipao, of soft pink silk embroidered with white and gold flowers, with its wide, high collar and slim sleeves, was nothing like what she usually wore. 

“It’s so...sleek.” The expression on his face as he said that made her take it for a “yes.”

“I brought back some men’s clothing for you, too,” Yun-ho said. “You’re going to look so handsome!” She took Geun-tae’s hands again, letting him lift her into the air and spin her around.

“My lady,” said Chul-ran. “I’ll have your bags brought to your rooms. Is there anything else you need?”

“No,” said Yun-ho. “Everything I want is right here.”

* * *

“They liked it, right? You sold a bunch, right?”

“Now, now,” Yun-ho laughed. “Is business really what you want to talk about right now?” 

“Just tell me, do I congratulate you or not?”

Yun-ho took a deep breath. “I signed a contract with a supplier to the imperial city!” she announced. “Not that there’s really an emperor right now, but—”

“Yun-ho, that’s amazing! That’s really—”

“And that’s all the business for tonight. I know that  _ news _ isn’t all you want from me, is it, husband?”

Geun-tae grinned, pulling Yun-ho close. “No...no, it most certainly is not.” Yun-ho closed her eyes, savoring the warmth of his breath on her cheek, the touch of his lips on hers. Then their kiss was interrupted by a tap on the door. 

“Lady Yun-ho, your things—”

“Ah—yes—bring them in!”

Geun-tae eyed the array of bags and boxes after the servant left. “That's more than you had when you left.”

“Souvenirs! After all, I may never have a chance to visit the Kai Empire again.”

“Are you kidding?” Geun-tae asked. “They'd be crazy not to want you back.” He paused. “But they like that smelly tea, so you can't trust their judgement.”

“Oh, shush.”

“Those souvenirs don't include more smelly tea you're going to make me try, do they?” Geun-tae asked, suddenly wary.

“Well—” It was true she'd brought back a lot of tea, varieties and blends from the Kai Empire and beyond. She wanted to think that surely among them would be something here husband would like. “They do have just plain green tea there, too, you know,” she said. “But somehow, it tastes completely different! The leaves are—” Well, Geun-tae wouldn't appreciate the details. “It’s really interesting,” she assured him.

“‘Interesting’ sounds suspicious.”

“Oh, and also! There’s something else I brought back. It’s not tea.”

“...some kind of alcohol?”

“No, but I did bring back some fine liquor too. This is...it’s hard to describe.” It had been brought by merchants from far to the southwest, a hot drink made not from tea leaves but from some kind of berries. Those merchants had traveled even farther than Yun-ho and been met with less success, and buying a little of their wares was the least she could do.

“Well, fine, fine, I’ll try it now. Get it over with.”

“...you’re curious, aren’t you?”

“What? No! You have weird tastes and I know it’s going to be strange.”

Yun-ho laughed. Her husband was always like this. He either outright hated her teas or couldn’t tell one grade of leaf from the next, but he was always willing—even eager, though he’d never admit it—to sample her latest obsession. It was really, really cute. “I’ll have to go to the kitchen and prepare it myself,” she said. “The servants won’t know how.” She rummaged through one of her bags till she found the right package. “I’ll be back in just a few minutes!”

* * *

It was more than a few minutes, of course—she needed to grind the beans and boil the water and get everything just right—but soon, Yun-ho returned with a tray bearing two small cups of frothy, brown liquid. 

“It looks like mud,” Geun-tae commented. He picked up one of the cups, about to toss it back all in one go.

“No, not like that!” He always drank his tea like that too, never savoring the flavor at all. “It's really strong,” she added.

“You think a little cup of mud is a match for me?” Geun-tae asked. Yun-ho rolled her eyes. Men. But Geun-tae did pause, sniffing the aroma of the beverage curiously. “It doesn't smell like mud,” he admitted. “Actually, it smells really good.” Tentatively, he took a sip, and his eyes lit up. “Yun-ho, this is amazing!” He hastily finished the rest of the little cup, before Yun-ho even started hers. “Yun-ho, you’re really amazing! You found something delicious!”

“You—you like it? You really like it?” After all the things she'd served him in all the years of their marriage, to finally find something he not only tolerated but actually appreciated—of course it would be this. “It's called 'coffee,’” Yun-ho said. Personally, she found the taste too bitter, and while she thought she'd be able to enjoy it on occasion, she knew she'd always prefer the delicate flavor of tea. But if Geun-tae really liked it—

“I love it.” Geun-tae stood up, a huge grin on his face, and Yun-ho held up her own cup to offer him. She didn't mind giving it up, to see him like this. “Damn, you probably only brought back a sample 'cause you figured I'd call it gross, right? Well, not this time! Though it still looks like mud. Let's order a year's supply, at least! I wonder if we can sell it. I wonder if that grumpy General Judo would buy it.” He was pacing the room, practically leaping with excitement.

“Oh, that's right,” Yun-ho remembered. “The merchants told me that coffee is usually a morning beverage, because it has an invigorating effect.” Much moreso than tea, they'd said. 

“Invigorating, huh?” He set the cup back down and reached out to Yun-ho. 

“Yes,” said Yun-ho, letting herself be pulled up to meet hm. “And since I already told you we won't be discussing business tonight—” She stood on her tiptoes and gave him a little peck on the cheek. “And since it's been so long—” She traced a finger down his cheek, then along his chest, then further down. “Shall we find a better use for all that energy?”


End file.
